Football

CAREER: One of Notre Dame's most experienced defensive backs will compete for the starting left cornerback position with Robert Blanton this year ... played in 35 games during his first three years with the Irish, starting 14 times ... recorded 54 tackles and a sack ... added 14 pass breakups and two career interceptions ... ranks 11th all-time in passes broken up following stellar '08 campaign where he recorded the third-most breakups in a season in school history ... quality special teams player for the Irish who has made 205 special-teams appearances.

2008 (JUNIOR): Started all 13 games for the Irish at cornerback ... recorded 41 tackles on the season and tallied 11 pass break-ups ... tied for third-most pass breakups by an Irish player in a season in school history ... picked off two passes and retuned them for a total of 47 yards ... tallied three tackles (two solo, assist) and two pass break-ups (then career-high) in the win vs. Michigan ... registered four tackles (solo, three assists) and a pass breakup against Michigan State while helping limit the Spartans to under 50 percent completion percentage on the day ... tallied six tackles (five solo) vs. North Carolina ... recorded his first two career interceptions and had three solo tackles against Pittsburgh ... accounted for two tackles (both solo) and three pass breakups vs. Boston College ... the three pass breakups in a single game were the most in the Weis Era ... made his 10th career start and recorded two tackles in victory vs. Navy ... helped limit the Midshipmen to just three pass completions on the day ... recorded six tackles (two solo, four assists) vs. Syracuse ... had two pass breakups in game vs. the Orange as well ... logged 286:04 of playing time with 117 special teams appearances.

2007 (SOPHOMORE): Played in 11 games (did not play at Penn State) and started first game of his Irish career (at Purdue) ... recorded nine tackles including one sack and one tackle for loss and also tallied three pass breakups ... recorded career-high five tackles, including four solo stops, at Michigan ... started for the first time at Purdue and notched one tackle and one pass breakup ... recorded his first career sack and tackle for loss on the same play at Stanford ... logged 70:36 of playing time with 33 special teams appearances.

2006 (FRESHMAN): Promising young cornerback played in 11 games during rookie season, totaling four tackles while appearing on special teams 45 times ... logged 14:13 of playing time and made 45 special teams appearances.

HIGH SCHOOL AND PERSONAL DATA: Graduated from Davie County High School in Davie, N.C. ... rated 91st on list of top 100 prep players nationally by USA Today ... rated 41st on list of top 100 players nationally by Chicago Sun-Times ... had six interceptions and 42 tackles as senior in 2005 at Davie County High School in Mocksville, N.C. ... one of five defensive backs on 2005 North Carolina all-state team by Associated Press ... finished with 15 career interceptions ... caught 34 passes for 682 yards and 20.1-yard average and seven TDs as senior wide receiver ... also scored three times on kick returns in `05 -- and six times in his career ... chosen for U.S. Army All-American Bowl -- and ran a blocked field goal back 65 yards for a TD in that contest ... made 60 tackles to go with five interceptions as junior in 2004 ... born Dec. 25, 1987 ... high school coach was Doug Illing ... enrolled in College of Arts and Letters and is majoring in design ... earned a 3.2 grade-point average for the fall '07 semester, a 3.5 GPA in the `08 spring semester and 3.417 in spring `09 ... owns a cumulative GPA of 3.210.